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In the Napster era, paid downloads were a music industry savior, generating $1.3 billion at their peak in 2012, according to Luminate. But the format seems like it’s headed toward extinction. Digital track sales have plummeted over the past decade, from 1.3 billion in 2012 to 152 million last year, a decrease of 88.6% — in 2022 alone, they dropped 25.1% from the previous year.
The declining importance of the format is evident in the desktop version of Apple’s once mighty iTunes Store, which now buries such purchases halfway down its Apple Music homepage. At Amazon, searching for MP3s diverts consumers to the Amazon Music streaming platform, where options include streaming as well purchasing digital music, vinyl or CDs.
“It’s a business that has been in steady decline for years,” says a source at a major label, adding that the company doesn’t receive complaints from consumers about the lack of prominently displayed downloads on retail sites. “We’re in a streaming economy now.”
That said, the sale of 152 million tracks translates to revenue exceeding $152 million, and many artists and labels say the format remains both useful and lucrative. If an artist racks up a significant number of digital sales — like Bonnie Raitt, who sold 9,000 downloads of “Just Like That” in the week following her February Grammy award win for song of the year — it can boost chart performance and validate career relevance. (A download sale is weighted more heavily in determining Billboard chart metrics than a single stream.)
And download sales can be valuable in other ways. In January 2021, two years after Avery Anna became TikTok famous as a high school student for singing country songs in a bathtub while self-isolating during the pandemic, her track “Just Cause I Love You” shot up the iTunes chart. “When we see something pop up on that chart, that certainly makes us pay attention,” says Warner Nashville senior vp of commercial partnerships Tim Foisset. Downloads are “an early indicator that there is something there — a certain fan base is going to engage with a certain artist.” Five months later, Warner Nashville announced it had signed the Flagstaff, Ariz., singer-songwriter.
“It’s part of the list of tools we employ to move on the chart,” Foisset adds. “While it isn’t crucial to our day-to-day decision-making or overall revenue, this is something that still can be important when we’re building a story for a song or a developing artist.”
Downloads generally appeal to an older crowd that prefers ownership to the song-renting nature of YouTube or Spotify. But younger K-pop and Taylor Swift fans respond to exclusive deals, like Swift’s 12-hour January sale of limited-edition digital copies of Midnights with exclusive cover art. Christine Barnum, chief revenue officer of distributor CD Baby, calls the format a piece of virtual merchandise that is “a much more approachable version” of a non-fungible token.
So far, though, that hasn’t connected with listeners the way that physical formats have of late. According to the RIAA, cassette sales jumped 28.3% from 2021 to 2022, from 343,000 to 440,000. Vinyl’s growth has been well documented, rising 847% from 2012 to 2022. Year-over-year growth decelerated in 2022 to a modest 4.3%, rising from 41.7 million in 2021 to 43.5 million.
Overall sales of physical product are dwarfed by streaming, which accounted for 84% of the industry’s total 2021 revenue of $12.4 billion. But revenue for physical sales reversed a decline during the pandemic, rising in 2020 for the first time in 16 years from $1.1 billion in 2019 to $1.2 billion in 2020, then continuing to grow to $1.7 billion in 2021.
Fans can’t hang downloads on their walls, though, and the format continues to slide. “Not very important,” says Ben Swanson, COO of top independent Secretly Group. “We still track it and sell it, but we don’t use that data meaningfully in budget discussions or anything like that.”
While Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers” has topped Billboard’s Digital Song Sales chart for the past five weeks, Jonathan Daniel, manager at Crush Music, says the revenue is not very significant for a pop star on her level. The download success, though, is useful to show that an older audience has come around to the former teen star’s work. “It’s a relative gauge of a slightly older listener — more of a [adult top 40] or adult contemporary format than, say, a pop or alternative-format listener,” says Daniel, who also represents Sia, Green Day, Lorde and Fall Out Boy.
Amazon and Apple representatives didn’t respond to requests for comment. Several online retailers, however, still emphasize downloads. Beatport’s customer base relies on them for its DJ sets — its download sales have increased by 5% to 10% every year since 2017, according to CEO Robb McDaniels. “We’re probably one of the only places in the world where download sales are increasing,” he says. “I think the labels are happy to see that.”
Barnum adds that downloads remain crucially important for indie artists who make far less than Cyrus’ level of revenue. “It’s a great tool — ‘I bought your download’ as opposed to ‘I played something on Spotify,’ ” she says. “Point zero-zerozero-something cents versus a dollar.”
Belmont University has appointed Brittany Schaffer, Spotify’s head of artist and label partnerships in Nashville, as the new dean of the Mike Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business, effective May 1.
“My career has focused on being a champion for people and ideas and innovations that have brought the music and broader entertainment industry together. At the same time, I have always been passionate about Nashville and its potential to be the creative center of the music business and a big player in the entertainment space at large,” Schaffer tells Billboard. “It’s an opportunity to align all the passions I have and all the work that I’ve done since starting my career into one place. It’s really exciting to be able to think about the legacy that the Curb College can leave on its students and how that influences the future of the music and entertainment space.”
Schaffer is the first female dean of the Nashville-based Mike Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business since it launched in 2003; she fills the role held for seven years by Belmont alumnus and longtime music industry executive Doug Howard, who retired last fall.
Dr. Sarita Stewart, associate professor of creative & entertainment industries, served as the interim dean for this academic year. Stewart will take on a new role as senior associate dean for Curb College, working alongside Schaffer on programming and curriculum.
Schaffer will report to the provost/executive vice president of Academic Excellence and will be responsible for the College’s academic programs and student enrichment initiatives. She will serve approximately 100 faculty and staff and more than 2,700 students in Curb College programs.Belmont’s music business program will celebrate its 50th anniversary during the 2023-24 academic year.
“I think it is a moment to celebrate the incredible work Belmont has done to get to this point,” Schaffer says of the milestone. “It is a program that is already recognized as one of the top entertainment and music business programs in the country and we need to celebrate that.”
She continues, “At the same time, I think the music industry and entertainment space are at a really exciting point of innovation. The landscape is changing faster than it probably ever has—the technology and business models that exist when students enter may look different by the time they graduate. It’s an exciting challenge to take on to think about how we prepare students to have a strong foundation in the fundamentals of the business, creativity and storytelling so they are prepared to navigate the changes that come that we can’t even anticipate. Also, right now, everyone wants to talk about Gen Z and those are our students. How do we create an environment where we are learning as much from our students as they are learning from us?”
Schaffer co-leads Spotify’s Nashville music team including overseeing the development and execution of Spotify’s global strategy to expand the country, Christian/Gospel and Americana genres. During Schaffer’s tenure, country music listening on Spotify grew by double digits annually, according to the streamer. She joined Spotify in January 2018, after serving as senior counsel for Nashville-based Loeb & Loeb, LLP.
Schaffer, who has been named to Billboard’s Country Power Players list for the past four years, is a magna cum laude graduate of both Vanderbilt University and Samford University’s Cumberland School of Law. She currently serves on the board of directors for the Country Music Association and Country Radio Broadcasters, as well as the St. Jude Country Cares Advisory Board. Schaffer is a Class of 2022 Leadership Music graduate.
Belmont president Dr. Greg Jones said via a statement, “Belmont’s Curb College has long been recognized for developing artists and executives who bring innovative leadership and creative storytelling to their roles throughout the entertainment industry. We are delighted Brittany Schaffer has accepted the role of dean, and I am confident that she will elevate our programs even further, deepening our connections within music, motion pictures and media while establishing new partnerships in Nashville, across the U.S. and around the globe.”
Belmont Provost Dr. David Gregory added, “Brittany will bring extraordinary passion, faith and experience to her new role as dean of Curb College. Her legal background and familiarity advocating for artists, writers, producers and more within the industry provide a unique perspective on the holistic education our students need to be successful in a variety of entertainment fields. Plus, though her time with Spotify, she has been on the leading edge of where these content rich fields are heading and is well prepared to ensure Curb College stays at the forefront of modern storytelling.”
Belmont alumni have risen to the highest ranks in Nashville’s music industry and include Universal Music Group Nashville president Cindy Mabe (class of 1995), Sony Music Publishing Nashville CEO Rusty Gaston (class of 1998) and Warner Chappell Music Nashville president and CEO Ben Vaughn (class of 2000).
Lewis Largent, the influential alternative rock radio DJ and MTV VJ that hosted 120 Minutes, died on Feb. 20, a representative confirmed to Billboard.
He passed away after a long illness, Variety first reported.
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Largent grew up in Southern California and launched his career in music at L.A.’s KROQ, with an internship that turned into a full-time role in 1985. Four years later, he was named musical director at the alternative radio station.
In 1992, Largent shifted over to MTV, where he landed as a vp of music programming and became the host of 120 Minutes, bringing artists including David Bowie, Bjork, Trent Reznor, Radiohead and PJ Harvey to television screens everywhere on Sunday nights. He was the face of the show through 1995, though he stayed with the company in his programming role until 1999.
His role as host was next appointed to Matt Pinfield, who upon hearing of Largent’s death tweeted Friday, “I am completely gutted. I loved Lewis very much. I am at a loss for words.”
Following his years with MTV, Largent went to Island Def Jam Records, where as svp of A&R he signed artists such as Sum 41 and Andrew WK. He left IDJ in 2004.
Later in life, he went back to college to study creative writing, earning a bachelor’s degree from Sarah Lawrence College and his Master of Fine Arts in 2015.
Largent is survived by wife Julie Greenwald, Atlantic Music Group chairman and CEO, and their two children.
The battle for control of K-pop company SM Entertainment has been a boon for its shareholders. SM’s stock rose 14.4% this week to 147,800 won ($111.95) after Kakao launched a tender offer to seek a 35% stake at 150,000 won ($113.62) per share. Korea’s largest music company, HYBE, previously sought to acquire up to 40% of SM shares at 120,000 won ($90.89) per share. Its tender offer largely failed, however, with HYBE’s stake increasing just 1% — from 14.8% to 15.8% — as investors held out for a better offer.
SM was one of just three stocks in the 20-company Billboard Global Music Index to be in positive territory this week. Abu Dhabi-based music streamer Anghami rose 5.5% and German concert promoter CTS Event rose 1.5%. The overall Global Music Index declined 3.9% to 1,192.56.
Shares of Spotify declined 1.7% to $121.67 this week after it unveiled a slew of new product features at its annual StreamOn event on Wednesday. The company announced it has already surpassed the 500 million monthly active user target for the first quarter with an entire month remaining.
In the U.S., the Dow index fell 1.1% and the S&P 500 declined 1.5%. The big news in the financial markets on Friday (March 10) was the closure of Silicon Valley Bank, the country’s 18th largest bank with assets of nearly $213 billion, according to the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council; it was a major player amongst the region’s tech companies and venture capital firms. It’s the second-biggest bank failure in U.S. history behind Washington Mutual at the height of the 2007-08 financial crisis. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation was appointed SVB’s receiver on Friday and will give insured depositors access to their funds no later than Monday.
The U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index declined 1.7%, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index declined 1.7% and Korea’s KOSPI index declined 1.0%.
This article was written in paid partnership with Triller.
Triller, the U.S.-based answer to foreign social media video sharing services, is poised to have a big 2023. The startup first rose to prominence in 2020, as it made headlines for producing blockbuster pay-per-view boxing matches as well as launching careers for a slew of up and coming combat sports athletes. Beyond its emphasis on sports promotion, the company was also embraced by many creators in 2020 as its China-based competitor faced increasing hostility from Congress and former President Donald Trump. While its competition readies itself for its first-ever testimony before Congress later this month, the future couldn’t look brighter for Triller, who is currently on the cusp of being publicly traded on the NYSE under the ticker symbol “illr.”
For Triller Executive Chairman and Owner Bobby Sarnevesht, the company’s success is due in no small part to the fact that it’s the only big tech company that isn’t owned by big tech. “Our primary stakeholders are the artists and the influencers themselves,” Sarnevesht says. “What people don’t understand is that we aren’t just ‘for the artists,’ we are the artists.” With a string of celebrity endorsements spanning social media, music, sports, and more, Sarnevesht claims that Triller might be “the largest creator owned company ever to exist.”
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While Triller does see itself as a bold competitor to other video sharing social media platforms, it does not define itself as such. “A lot of people came rushing onto Triller a few years ago when Trump first brought up the idea of a ban [on the foreign competition],” Sarnevesht says. “We definitely leaned into that…but that is not who we are, that is not how we define ourselves.”
Sarnevesht knows first hand how hard it is to build an audience on social media, and prides himself on Triller’s creator-first positioning. “I hear daily horror stories about hard working artists who spent the last three years building their following – whether it’s to 5,000, 500,000 or 50 million people – only to wake up and find that [their platform] is literally blocking them from marketing to their own audience if they don’t pay [them]. [These platforms] put up a paywall where they actually block you from posting to all your own users without paying for…access [to] them,” Sarnevesht says.
On Triller, Sarnevesht explains, companies are set up to actually give the creator direct ownership of the relationship with their followers and maximize their revenue. “That’s why our products like Cliqz, our SMS app for influencers, get over a 70% open rate and an unheard of over 30% click through rate,” Sarnevesht says. “Creators literally can make 10x or more on Triller [than] they can on any other platform.”
Triller alleges to be majority owned by actual artists, influencers, and talent who in turn can maximize engagement with their followers and take home more revenue versus other platforms where big tech takes the lion’s share. According to Sarnevesht, the company’s “secret sauce” lies in its use of AI. “Triller at its core is an AI company. Its base of AI comes by way of an acquisition approximately two years ago [when Triller bought AI startup] Amplify.AI,” Sarnevesht says. Sarnevesht and team refer to Triller’s Conversational AI system as “ChatGPT for Brands,” claiming that to date, the technology has enabled over 20B conversations with more than half a billion users. “While others are just discovering ‘ChatGPT’ and trying to find some AI angle for valuation purposes, Triller literally is built on AI and always has been,” Sarnevesht says.
Ahead of what could surely be the brand’s biggest year to date, Sarnevesht and team have launched a custom social media converter for creators to transfer their entire video sharing accounts, including usernames, to Triller. “This is our coming out party,” says Sarnevesht. “Transfer your [other accounts] now.”
For Sarnevesht and team, Triller isn’t just a social media app but an entire creator ecosystem unto itself. According to Sarnevesht, Triller has conducted 10 acquisitions since 2020, making it more than a single app but a marketplace setup to allow influencers to, as Sarnevesht puts it, create the best content and share it as broadly as possible across all other social media networks while retaining control of their own users and maximizing what they can make.
Keep your eye on this space for more from Triller and Sarnevesht.
Julie Adam was named executive vp/general manager at Universal Music Canada, where she will lead frontline operations, overseeing marketing, digital strategy, commercial affairs and brand partnership portfolios. Adam joins from Rogers Sports & Media, where she was most recently president of news & entertainment.
Alison Donald was promoted to head of global creative at Kobalt, where she will be based between London and Los Angeles. She previously oversaw A&R and creative in the U.K. and Europe for Kobalt Music Publishing as well as AWAL’s U.K. and Europe creative team prior to its sale.
Jennifer Blakeman joined Seeker Music as chief rights & royalties officer. She comes from boutique music publisher one77 Music, where she served as president/chief creative officer. In her new role, she will lead and oversee the expansion of Seeker’s rights management, administration and royalty platforms. Blakeman can be reached at blakeman@seekermusic.com.
Michael Allen was named vp of marketing strategy at Republic Records, where he will develop and execute campaigns for artists across pop and K-pop. The New York-based executive joined Republic in 2020 as a digital marketing consultant.
Gabe Fleet joined law firm Latham & Watkins as partner in the connectivity, privacy & information practice. Fleet, a prominent music licensing lawyer, joins from iHeartMedia, where he served as executive vp of business affairs and chief music licensing counsel. He anticipates being part of Latham’s New York office upon admission to the New York Bar; he is currently licensed to practice in Georgia and Alabama. He can be reached at Gabe.Fleet@lw.com.
Merlin announced several promotions. They include Ryan McWhinnie to vp of business and legal affairs, Shrina Patel to senior director of business and legal affairs, Chris Tarbet to senior director of commercial partnerships, Chaida Kapfunde to senior director of business and technology solutions, Pavan Vasdev to director of strategy & growth, Quentin Martins to senior manager of commercial partnerships and Grace Styles to senior finance assistant.
Big Machine Label Group promoted Courtney Daly, Bekah Digby and Marie Wapelhorst to director of streaming and Anna Scott Welch to manager of streaming. Sam Featherstone also joined the company as director of streaming; he was previously at Sony Music Entertainment, where he served as associate director of commercial partnerships. Daly can be reached at courtney.daly@bmlg.net, Digby can be reached at bekah.digby@bmlg.net, Featherstone can be reached at sam.featherstone@bmlg.net, Wapelhorst can be reached at marie.wapelhorst@bmlg.net and Scott Welch can be reached at annascott.welch@bmlg.net.
Red Street Records hired several new team members, including Brooklynn Gould-Bradbury as manager of publicity and communications, Dottie Chamberlain as executive assistant/operations manager and Riley Cooper as digital marketing coordinator. Gould-Bradbury joins from CMT and can be reached at brooklynn.g@redstreetrecords.com. Chamberlain joins from Universal Music Nashville, where she served as executive assistant to chairman/CEO Mike Dungan (for whom she worked for nearly three decades). She can be reached at Dottie.c@redstreetrecords.com. Cooper, who is coming off internships with companies including Sweet Talk Publicity and Triple 8 Management, can be reached at riley.c@redstreetrecords.com.
Universal Music Group senior vp of business and legal affairs Aaron Harrison was appointed to the SoundExchange board of directors; he replaces Sony Music’s Jeff Walker. Harrison also serves on the SoundExchange licensing committee.
Hannah Babitt, CEO/founder of Los Angeles-based boutique management company BABZ, announced the opening of BABZ Nashville. Babitt will oversee BABZ in both Los Angeles and Nashville, with Jacklyn Figueiredo and Eden Lytle based in Los Angeles.
Claudia Russo was named senior vp of corporate communications at UTA. She joins from Verizon Business Markets, where she served as head of communications. Beginning in the role immediately, she will relocate to Los Angeles from New York this summer.
Sweden-based label A-P Records rebranded to Overtone Studios and named producer/songwriter Rami Yacoub as director of music development, North America. Based in Los Angeles, he’ll help spearhead the company’s international expansion.
Adam Sachs was named senior vp of entertainment, comedy and podcasts programming at SiriusXM. The executive first joined the satellite broadcaster following its acquisition of Team Coco, where he served as president.
First Artists Management hired Zoe Hart as agent in its London office and promoted Hailey Flame to agent in Los Angeles. Hart, who joins from Faber Music, can be reached at ZHart@firstartistsmgmt.com. Flame can be reached at Hflame@firstartistsmgmt.com.
Nigel Elderton was named chairman at music technology company Audoo, which is focused on improving accuracy, transparency and reporting in public performance royalty data collection and payment distribution.
Radio personality Charlamagne Tha God, rapper Master P and Vicky Cornell, wife of late Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell are among the first speakers lined up for the Hollywood & Mind Summit, taking place May 11 in Los Angeles at United Talent Agency (UTA).
The conference, which will focus on how the entertainment industry can elevate mental health, will also feature Christina Wootton, head of partnerships at Roblox; Carmela Wallace, mother of the late Jarad “Juice WRLD” Higgins and Grammy-nominated singer/songwriter Valerie June, as well as a number of mental health professionals.
The one-day summit, which takes place during Mental Health Awareness Month, will bring together executives and talent across television, film, music and digital with mental health experts for discussions on mental health storytelling, the power of song, and opportunities to elevate mental wellness through tech and gaming, among other topics.
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“The entertainment industry has unique and unrivaled influence to help stem our global mental health crisis,” said Cathy Applefeld Olson, veteran entertainment journalist and founder of Hollywood & Mind. “Our inaugural Summit will gather key stakeholders across Hollywood and the mental health sector to delve into essential conversations, share learnings and ask the next important questions.” (Olson is a Billboard contributor.)
Following the day-time summit, Hollywood & Mind will host an evening launch party at UTA, where attendees can network as well as experience activations including a Mindfulness Wall presented by Case Kenny, author and host of the podcast New Mindset, Who Dis?
In addition to UTA, other sponsors include Hallmark Media, Publicis Health, Milk & Honey Music + Sports + Ventures and MTV Entertainment Studios.
Adidas is still wrestling with how to dispose of 1.2 billion euros ($1.3 billion) worth of Yeezy shoes after its breakup with the rapper formerly known as Kanye West, forcing the German sportswear maker into a big loss at the end of last year and expectations of more pain ahead.
CEO Bjorn Gulden said selling the popular line of shoes would mean paying royalties to Ye, who was dropped by Adidas five months ago after making antisemitic remarks on social media and in interviews. During an earnings call Wednesday, he pointed to “many variables” about what to do with the shoes now stacked in warehouses.
Destroying them could “raise sustainability issues,” though some companies have offered recycling solutions, said Gulden, who was named CEO after the blowup over Ye’s remarks. Restitching them to hide the Yeezy brand so they could be sold “is not very honest, so it’s not an option,” he added.
Suggestions to give them away to those in need in places like earthquake-hit Syria or Turkey would mean the product would “come back again very quickly” due to its high market value, “so that’s not really an option,” Gulden said.
If Adidas does decide to sell the shoes, “I can promise you that the people that have been hurt by this will also get something good out of it and get donations and proceeds in different ways, shapes or forms,” the CEO said.
Adidas split with Ye in October, following other brands that were facing pressure to end ties with the rapper over his antisemitic and other offensive remarks. The company is now struggling to find ways to become profitable again and replace its banner Yeezy line, which analysts have said amounted to as much as 15% of its net income.
The Ye breakup cost 600 million euros in lost sales in the last three months of 2022, helping drive the company to a net loss of 513 million euros. The decline, also attributed to higher supply costs and slumping revenue in China, contrasts with profit of 213 million euros in the fourth quarter of 2021.
More losses could be ahead, with the company forecasting a 500 million-euro hit to profit earnings this year if it decides not to repurpose the remaining Yeezy products in stock. The company is predicting a 2023 operating loss of 700 million euros.
Gulden said “so many companies” were willing to buy the popular shoes but that would mean paying royalties to Ye. Rumors that the company was in talks to sell them, however, “are not true.”
He had heard from “gazillions of people that have opinions about this, and of course when you’re sitting on the inside, it looks a little bit different than it looks on the outside.”
Gulden also said Adidas is still investigating former employees’ allegations that Ye created a toxic work environment and that the sportswear company knew about his problematic behavior and failed to protect workers.
The CEO called 2023 “a transition year,” saying “we can then start to build a profitable business again in 2024.”
Last year, fourth-quarter net sales were up a bare 1.3% at 5.21 billion euros from the same quarter a year ago. The company pointed to revenue dropping 50% in China and higher costs for supplies and shipping, which could not be offset by price hikes.
For the full year, the Herzogenaurach, Germany-based company said it made a net profit of 638 million euros on sales that rose 6%, to 22.5 billion euros.
Adidas also further shook up its leadership by replacing its top sales and marketing executives. Global sales head Roland Auschel will leave the company after 33 years and be succeeded by Arthur Hoeld, now head of the Europe, Middle East and Africa region.
Brian Grevy, head of global brands, will step down March 31. CEO Gulden will take on his product and marketing responsibilities.
Snoop Dogg teamed up with U.K. tech entrepreneur Sam Jones on Shiller, a live broadcast platform set to launch in April that will offer content creators a suite of tools to monetize their content, including the ability to token-gate their video and audio, share products from commerce sites and promote NFTs. According to a press release, the app “combines best of web3 technology with live, interactive video and audio streaming, to provide a one-stop-shop for creators, including NFT projects, artists, brands, and key opinion leaders, to monetize their following and connect with their audiences.”
B2B streaming technology company Tuned Global acquired Swedish music technology company Pacemaker, which holds several patents for its AI-driven DJ applications. “Thanks to Pacemaker, Tuned Global extends its B2B streaming technology dominance by now offering enhanced AI tools that will hook and excite users as part of our white-label music apps, as well as in a standalone product for companies who aren’t yet our customers,” said Tuned Global MD/founder Con Raso in a statement. Pacemaker’s AI DJ is capable of weaving together tracks and other audio, while a “match machine “can help curators instantly dig up great tracks in a massive catalog and keep the groove going for workouts, therapeutic sessions, or other playlist-driven moments,” according to a press release.
DJ/producer Steve Aoki launched Audio Media Grading in partnership with Collector Archive Services. The new company will provide grading, preservation and authentication services for grading vinyl records, cassettes, CDs and 8-track.
Cutting Edge Media Music (CEMM), a division of Cutting Edge Group, formed a strategic venture with Village Roadshow Entertainment Group that will encompass all of Village Roadshow’s past and future music publishing assets, soundtrack album releases and music supervision services for film and TV. The venture will be overseen by Brian McNelis, who heads CEMM division Lakeshore Records, along with Lakeshore’s Eric Craig, who will provide music supervision and music department support across the Village Roadshow slate. Village Roadshow COO Louis Santor will take the lead in implementing all aspects of the deal.
B2B distributor FUGA expanded its global user-generated content and rights management offering by completely integrating rights management company Adrev. Both are owned by Downtown Music. The integration formalizes months of collaboration between FUGA and Adrev, according to a press release, which states that with the integration, “both FUGA and Adrev clients will now be provided with an extended service aimed at amplifying and simplifying UGC and premium video content monetization into one, seamless environment.”
BMG partnered with Stockholm-based artist management company Scandinavian Talent Management (STM), which also specializes in music supervision, music publishing and live events. “We are delighted with BMG’s trust and are confident that we can create many synergies with their global resources and networks,” said STM founder/MD Henrik Johansson in a statement. STM clients include Swedish rock-pop singer-songwriter and BMG artist Kristofer Greczula; British guitarist, songwriter and producer Chad Neale; and Mando Diao bassist Carl-Johan “CeeJay” Fogelklou.
Chordal partnered with AI developer AudioShake to launch Auto-Instrumental, described as an “on-demand instrumental solution” for music supervisors that’s designed to streamline synch placement. “Auto-Instrumental reduces the time of obtaining an instrumental from days or weeks (if it even exists!) to a matter of seconds, making it immediately possible to trial music to picture,” said Chordal co-founder Grayson Sanders in a statement.
Film and TV company Gunpowder & Sky signed a multi-year, multi-project development and production deal with Audible. Under the deal, Gunpowder & Sky will provide Audible with an exclusive first look at the studio’s slate of audio initiatives covering music, pop culture and more. In February, Audible released In the Cut with Ghetto Gastro, an eight-episode Audible Original podcast executive produced by Gunpowder & Sky. Two upcoming music-oriented podcasts from the companies — Lighters in the Sky and Shelved — “will reveal iconic, often undercover, music stories to the masses,” according to a press release. The first-look deal builds on an existing collaboration that has spawned multiple installments in Audible’s Words + Music franchise.
Opry Entertainment Group (OEG) has made a minority investment in country music lifestyle brand Whiskey Riff in an effort to draw a younger audience to its properties.
OEG, which counts the Grand Ole Opry, Ryman Auditorium, WSM Radio and the Blake Shelton-inspired Ole Red slate of restaurants/music venues among its portfolio, plans to use the alignment with Whiskey Riff to reach a younger demographic, attract new audiences to its brands, develop a stronger digital presence and further support emerging artists.
“They have created a really compelling brand, one that has built an incredibly loyal following,” says Mark Fioravanti, president and CEO of Ryman Hospitality Properties of Whiskey Riff. “They attract a younger demographic, and this gives us another way to connect our brands and the artists we support with younger fans.”
Fioravanti declined to comment on the specific percentage invested in Whiskey Riff or if OEG plans to increase its ownership stake in Whiskey Riff in the future.
Created by Steve Gazibara and Wes Langeler in 2015, Whiskey Riff has become a destination website for consumer country music news and content, as well as for outdoors and lifestyle content that resonates with the country music audience.
Across the Whiskey Riff brand umbrella as a whole, including Whiskey Riff social media accounts as well as @RIFFOutdoors, @WhiskeyRiffShop and @WhiskeyRiffRaff, the company says the sites have collectively drawn over 3.3 million social media followers. Over half of Whiskey Riff viewers are between the ages of 18-44.
Gazibara tells Billboard of launching Whiskey Riff, “I just thought, ‘If you are a college kid sitting in class, you don’t have a place to go to get a playlist, a podcast, a funny story, an outdoors thing, music stories and maybe a funny t-shirt if you want to get it for a concert.’”
“We share a certain segment of fans with Opry Entertainment, but we also have different fans in certain capacities,” Langeler adds. “The Opry does a great job of promoting rising artists that are independent and then they also bring on seasoned veterans, [Country Music] Hall of Fame members. I think we can really just help each other grow and continually bring new fans to each other.”
One element the Whiskey Riff co-founders insist won’t change is the site’s distinctive voice.
“The Opry knows we’re gonna have opinions,” Gazibara says. “They don’t have a say in the content, obviously, but of course you want to amplify their content that fits with our audience—and there is plenty of that from their end.”
Currently, OEG supports emerging artists in multiple ways, including Grand Ole Opry debut performances, as well as the “My Opry Debut” series, which runs on television network Circle, OEG’s joint venture with Gray Television. Additionally, new acts garner support through the Opry NextStage program, and performances at various Ole Red locations (Ole Red is set to add a Las Vegas location later this year).
OEG and Whiskey Riff are considering a range of collaborative options, including podcasts and cross-promotional retail/branding opportunities. “You might see some of their brand of products in our brick and mortar locations,” Fioravanti says. “We are just starting to have those discussions, but it’s an opportunity to collaborate with our retail capabilities.”
Gazibara and Langeler envision further amplifying Whiskey Riff’s lifestyle content, including food, hunting, fishing and other sports. Meanwhile, the Colorado-based Whiskey Riff will soon have a full-time Nashville presence; the site’s operations manager will relocate to Nashville, while the site’s Nashville-based assistant editor will move to a full-time role.
“They will have access to go backstage [at the Opry], talk to people, maybe get some fun, rapid-fire content before artists go onstage, or show the jam band-kind of thing that often happens backstage,” Langeler says. “We want to give fans an inside look at stuff they maybe wouldn’t have seen.
“The Opry is the greatest country music institution in the world,” Langeler adds. “I think we will be a machine going forward, pumping out content, giving fans that access and telling great stories. Country music is such a rich storytelling fabric and we will be able to help the Opry amplify that, and they will be able to help us to be able to tell these stories.”